Name

Year

Credit

credited As

The CW
Do you love Top Model? Know your pot ledom from your booty tooch?
Us too. When we think of the life skills and foreign languages we could have mastered instead of watching almost 20 whole seasons (sorry: CYCLES), we’re all, "whatever, pass the nachos."
But like us, are you an America’s Next Top Model fan who’s endured the last five cycles with more than a little ennui? America, are you thinking what we’re thinking? When did Tyra’s super Bankable franchise jump the shark?
We’ve endured All-Stars, a college edition, a plus-size cycle and a short girl season. Tyra’s introduced social media – somewhat hamfistedly – in the form of new judge and fashion blogger Bryanboy, social media votes and Instagram casting. On the judging panel, we have Katy Perry’s stylist Johnny Wujeck, bad New York fashion b**ch Kelly Cutrone AND eye candy in the form of male model Rob Evans (drool!).
But has the cool-over worked? Did the show lose its charm, along with its entire panel of fashion homebodies? Tell us you’re not kind of missing silver (rinsed) Canadian fox Jay Manuel, "sexy" bald guy Nigel Barker, cuddly mother figure Twiggy and, of course, Miss J: the tranny with the size eleven spike heels. Sure, the panel was more Velveeta than Vogue; but Tyra’s desire to roll with fashion’s cool kids highlights, rather than masks, the fact that she was never exactly haute couture herself.
From her alleged tormentor (and bonafide supermodel) Naomi Campbell ignoring her on her own talkshow, to Karl Lagerfeld saying he’s never heard of her, Tyra has always been more eager-to-please cocker spaniel than lithe fashion greyhound.
You can keep the hashtags (and the boys of Cycle 20), Tyra. But when ratings dip despite your most valiant efforts to chase them, maybe it’s time to look under the weave for your show’s perfectly nice, apple pie roots.
Follow @Hollywood_com
//
More:ANTM: Boys in the SnoodTyra and Naomi Make UpKate Moss on Sale (at Christie’s)
From Our Partners:40 Most Revealing See-Through Red Carpet Looks (Vh1)15 Stars Share Secrets of their Sex Lives (Celebuzz)

When supermodel Naomi Campbell took the stage Monday morning at the Television Critics Association press tour, the entire room full of reporters stood up a little straighter and braced for any potential flying cell phones.
Luckily there were no iPhone fatalities. Instead, Campbell discussed her new Oxygen reality-show The Face — think of it as a combination of America’s Next Top Model and The Voice. When the TV competition premieres Feb. 12, viewers will see executive producer Campbell — along with former Victoria’s Secret angel Karolina Kurkova and world-renowned supermodel Coco Rocha — act as mentor to 12 hopeful models.
Each coach will guide a team of four girls as they compete to be the face of ULTA Beauty, one of the fastest-growing beauty retailers in the United States. Fashion photographer and former ANTM judge Nigel Barker will host what he considers to be a “truly unique” freshman series. Barker explained that he is excited to serve as a “negotiator” on the competition, rather than as a judge.
Campbell expressed her desire to bring a show like this to television. “There is no model handbook," she says. "Coming from the nineties we basically had to learn as we went along … I think the industry has changed and we have changed, and now I think a show like this is definitely needed.”
Executive producer Eden Gaha stressed that The Face will focus on the real world of modeling, as opposed to a characterized version that other modeling shows in the past have featured. (Ahem, he’s totally talking about you ANTM…)
The three supermodel coaches handpicked the top 12 girls from a group of 24 models, whose experience ranged from 10-plus years in the industry to fresh-faced newbies. The coaches were quick to reveal that there were no height requirements to enter the competition. “That’s what is so great about our show," Campbell says. "We’ve got from small to tall.”Barker said it was great to watch the coaches form a genuine bond with each of their contestants. Campbell agreed, revealing, “Whether the girls were on my team or not — whether they were on Karolina’s team or Coco’s team — I felt an overall protection to all the girls.” The mentor and EP says that at times she felt like a “certified shrink” on the show, however, Campbell explains that she was still brutally honest with her girls. “I'm the mentor or coach that gives tough love… I do believe that you should not sugar-coat anything."
So — what is the secret to winning the new Oxygen reality competition? “I think the bottom line is they have to believe in themselves,” Campbell says.
You can catch the series premiere of The Face Tuesday, Feb. 12 on Oxygen.
Follow Leanne on Twitter @LeanneAguilera
[Photo Credit: Oxygen]
MORE:
Justin Bieber Teases 'SNL' Hosting Gig With Very Important Tweet
'Happy Endings' Recap: 2013 Is Going to Be a Happy Year
'The Biggest Loser' Premiere: Are You Glad Jillian Michaels Is Back? — POLL
From Our Partners:
30 Hottest Lingerie Scenes from the Past 30 Years (Celebuzz)
Child Stars: Where Are They Now? (Celebuzz)

Widening the thematic scope without sacrificing too much of the claustrophobia that made the original 1979 Alien universally spooky Prometheus takes the trophy for this summer's most adult-oriented blockbuster entertainment. The movie will leave your mouth agape for its entire runtime first with its majestic exploration of an alien planet and conjectures on the origins of the human race second with its gross-out body horror that leaves no spilled gut to the imagination. Thin characters feel more like pawns in Scott's sci-fi prequel but stunning visuals shocking turns and grand questions more than make up for the shallow ensemble. "Epic" comes in many forms. Prometheus sports all of them.
Based on their discovery of a series of cave drawings all sharing a similar painted design Elizabeth (Noomi Rapace) and Charlie (Logan Marshall-Green) are recruited by Weyland to head a mission to another planet one they believe holds the answers to the creation of life on Earth. Along for the journey are Vickers (Charlize Theron) the ruthless Weyland proxy Janek (Idris Elba) a blue collar captain a slew of faceless scientists and David (Michael Fassbender) HAL 9000-esque resident android who awakens the crew of spaceship Prometheus when they arrive to their destination. Immediately upon descent there's a discovery: a giant mound that's anything but natural. The crew immediately prepares to scope out the scene zipping up high-tech spacesuits jumping in futuristic humvees and heading out to the site. What they discover are the awe-inspiring creations of another race. What they bring back to the ship is what they realize may kill their own.
The first half of Prometheus could be easily mistaken for Steven Spielberg's Alien a sense of wonder glowing from every frame not too unlike Close Encounters. Scott takes full advantage of his fictional settings and imbues them with a reality that makes them even more tantalizing. He shoots the vistas of space and the alien planet like National Geographic porn and savors the interior moments on board the Prometheus full of hologram maps sleeping pods and do-it-yourself surgery modules with the same attention. Prometheus is beautiful shot in immersive 3D that never dampers Dariusz Wolski's sharp photography. Scott's direction seems less interested in the run-or-die scenario set up in the latter half of the film but the film maintains tension and mood from beginning to end. It all just gets a bit…bloodier.
Jon Spaihts' and Damon Lindelof's script doesn't do the performers any favors shuffling them to and fro between the ship and the alien construction without much room for development. Reveals are shoehorned in without much setup (one involving Theron's Vickers that's shockingly mishandled) but for the most part the ensemble is ready to chomp into the script's bigger picture conceits. Rapace is a physical performer capable of pulling off a grisly scene involving an alien some sharp objects and a painful procedure (sure to be the scene of the blockbuster season. Among the rest of the crew Fassbender's David stands out as the film's revelatory performance delivering a digestible ambiguity to his mechanical man that playfully toys with expectations from his first entrance. The creature effects in Prometheus will wow you but even Fassbender's smallest gesture can send the mind spinning. The power of his smile packs more of a punch than any facehugger.
Much like Lindelof's Lost Prometheus aims to explore the idea of asking questions and seeking answers and on Scott's scale it's a tremendous unexpected ride. A few ideas introduced to spur action fall to the way side in the logic department but with a clear mission and end point Prometheus works as a sweeping sci-fi that doesn't require choppy editing or endless explosions to keep us on the edge of our seats. Prometheus isn't too far off from the Alien xenomorphs: born from existing DNA of another creature the movie breaks out as its own beast. And it's wilder than ever.
="font-style:>

The first and most important thing you should know about Paramount Pictures’ Thor is that it’s not a laughably corny comic book adaptation. Though you might find it hokey to hear a bunch of muscled heroes talk like British royalty while walking around the American Southwest in LARP garb director Kenneth Branagh has condensed vast Marvel mythology to make an accessible straightforward fantasy epic. Like most films of its ilk I’ve got some issues with its internal logic aesthetic and dialogue but the flaws didn’t keep me from having fun with this extra dimensional adventure.
Taking notes from fellow Avenger Iron Man the story begins with an enthralling event that takes place in a remote desert but quickly jumps back in time to tell the prologue which introduces the audience to the shining kingdom of Asgard and its various champions. Thor (Chris Hemsworth) son of Odin is heir to the throne but is an arrogant overeager and ill-tempered rogue whose aggressive antics threaten a shaky truce between his people and the frost giants of Jotunheim one of the universe’s many realms. Odin (played with aristocratic boldness by Anthony Hopkins) enraged by his son’s blatant disregard of his orders to forgo an assault on their enemies after they attempt to reclaim a powerful artifact banishes the boy to a life among the mortals of Earth leaving Asgard defenseless against the treachery of Loki his mischievous “other son” who’s always felt inferior to Thor. Powerless and confused the disgraced Prince finds unlikely allies in a trio of scientists (Natalie Portman Stellan Skarsgard and Kat Dennings) who help him reclaim his former glory and defend our world from total destruction.
Individually the make-up visual effects CGI production design and art direction are all wondrous to behold but when fused together to create larger-than-life set pieces and action sequences the collaborative result is often unharmonious. I’m not knocking the 3D presentation; unlike 2010’s genre counterpart Clash of the Titans the filmmakers had plenty of time to perfect the third dimension and there are only a few moments that make the decision to convert look like it was a bad one. It’s the unavoidable overload of visual trickery that’s to blame for the frost giants’ icy weaponized constructs and other hybrids of the production looking noticeably artificial. Though there’s some imagery to nitpick the same can’t be said of Thor’s thunderous sound design which is amped with enough wattage to power The Avengers’ headquarters for a century.
Chock full of nods to the comics the screenplay is both a strength and weakness for the film. The story is well sequenced giving the audience enough time between action scenes to grasp the characters motivations and the plot but there are tangential narrative threads that disrupt the focus of the film. Chief amongst them is the frost giants’ fore mentioned relic which is given lots of attention in the first act but has little effect on the outcome. In addition I felt that S.H.I.E.L.D. was nearly irrelevant this time around; other than introducing Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye the secret security faction just gets in the way of the movie’s momentum.
While most of the comedy crashes and burns there are a few laughs to be found in the film. Most come from star Hemsworth’s charismatic portrayal of the God of Thunder. He plays up the stranger-in-a-strange-land aspect of the story with his cavalier but charming attitude and by breaking all rules of diner etiquette in a particularly funny scene with the scientists whose respective roles as love interest (Portman) friendly father figure (Skarsgaard) and POV character (Dennings) are ripped right out of a screenwriters handbook.
Though he handles the humorous moments without a problem Hemsworth struggles with some of the more dramatic scenes in the movie; the result of over-acting and too much time spent on the Australian soap opera Home and Away. Luckily he’s surrounded by a stellar supporting cast that fills the void. Most impressive is Tom Hiddleston who gives a truly humanistic performance as the jealous Loki. His arc steeped in Shakespearean tragedy (like Thor’s) drums up genuine sympathy that one rarely has for a comic book movie villain.
My grievances with the technical aspects of the production aside Branagh has succeeded in further exploring the Marvel Universe with a film that works both as a standalone superhero flick and as the next chapter in the story of The Avengers. Thor is very much a comic book film and doesn’t hide from the reputation that its predecessors have given the sub-genre or the tropes that define it. Balanced pretty evenly between “serious” and “silly ” its scope is large enough to please fans well versed in the source material but its tone is light enough to make it a mainstream hit.

A billionaire TV producer (Robert Mammone) has a great idea for a reality show that he wants to put on the Internet and his goal is to beat the 40 million Super Bowl audience. He has compiled a crack team of young hip and immoral tech geeks directed by Goldman (Rick Hoffman) and puts cameras throughout a remote island where former prisoners are going to kill each other while audiences watch after shelling out the pay-per-view fee. The location is done on a remote secret island and the death row prisoners are bought from prisons around the world with the promise that the survivor gets to walk free. Among the contestants are a rogue Aussie named McStarley (Vinnie Jones) a martial arts expert (Masa Yamaguchi) a husband-and-wife team (Manu Bennett and Dasi Ruz) a monstrous killer who doesn't do much more than grunt (Nathan Jones) and others known only as The Italian The German and other monikers quickly forgotten. Enter the sole American Jack Conrad (Steve Austin) who's in a South American prison for some obscure reason and is recognized on TV by his wife (Madeleine West) who tries to save him. However it looks like Conrad is pretty good at helping himself. Don't expect the acting to be much more evolved than what could be seen among the World Wrestling Entertainment superstars especially since many of them were plucked from the ring to star in this morality tale. But Austin (who had in a strong cameo in Adam Sandler's Longest Yard) proves he has a sense of humor as well as strength. Vinnie Jones is ridiculously over-the-top as the Aussie who's the hand-picked winner of this game shown setting up alliances Survivor style only to turn on them later. The supporting cast are refreshingly entertaining but one-note caricatures both in the contest and running the contest. It's obvious that they aren't going to be around long but the actors do milk their tiny roles for every bit of attention they can get. Rick Hoffman as the brilliant camera mastermind of the project is both whiny sniveling and mean-spirited so when he joins some of the rest of the crew and suddenly develops a backbone and a conscience he ends up stealing the movie with his acerbic humor. But it's the understated American hero Conrad who holds a mirror up to the people who like to watch this stuff. Director Scott Wiper who co-wrote this story has also acted in similar movies like this (A Better Way to Die). It’s obvious he knows what he’s doing with The Condemned and develops a sense of voyeuristic angst like those of us who can't keep our eyes off a train wreck. Like the darkly subversive Belgian film Man Bites Dog the camera crew remains safely distant and remote until the reality directly involves them. Then the crew wonders "What the hell are we doing?" while the audience might be thinking "What the hell are we watching?" Much like Series 7: The Contenders Rollerball and other movies which show a dark and bloody near future this kind of reality doesn't seem too far away and maybe proves that movies which provide this type of gladiator spectacle target a certain segment of the human population who need to blow off steam.